Robert B. Parker's Ironhorse (Virgil Cole & Everett Hitch Book 5) Kindle Edition

It's daunting to be asked to carry on part of Robert B. Parker's beloved legacy. I therefore approached this book carefully. I was surprised at how good it is. The western material about trains, telegraphy, and much else is authentic and interesting. The outlaws are appropriately evil. And Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch continue to be great heroes as they attempt to save passengers on a train from a gang of robbers and rescue two young women. The writing is crisp. The adventures move along at a quick, Parker-like pace. All in all, this book is surprising in how satisfying it is.That's not to say the book is perfect. The book should have begun with the last paragraph of the third chapter where the story genuinely commences. There aren't enough plot twists and surprises. Robert Knott has chosen to imitate Parker rather than build on his creation. Still, I have a simple test for all the attempts to carry on the three Parker series: do I want to read the next book? In this case, I very much look forward to it. It would be interesting for the author to explore Cole and Hitch, dig deeper into their characters. Whatever he does though, I'm going along for the ride.

A few years ago I read my first western, Appaloosa by Robert B. Parker and I fell in love with the genre, written as opposed to the screen. As Parker brought out new books, I snagged them up and read them as quickly as I could. I loved his terse prose and the way he could use a few sentences to tell you the same as another author would in numerous pages.Unfortunately, after the forth book Parker passed away. I thought my journey with Cole & Hitch was over. Last week I managed to come across the fact that there were, not one, but two new books! Though written by another author, and I will admit the reviews for the first book were not glowing, I took a chance. Cole & Hitch are that good.Enter Ironhorse by Robert Knott. Knott wrote the screenplay for the big screen adaptation of Appaloosa and from what I gather was hand picked by the Parker family to continue the adventures of the dynamic freelance-turned-lawmen.Let me just say up front that Knott is not Parker. Parker had an amazing style of making even the simplest sentences have a very dramatic weight. Those two and three word sentences mouthed by Cole had as much weight in the story as a stanza of Shakespeare (ok, maybe stretching it a little). Knott does a fine job here taking up the reins, perhaps not perfect, but he does a fine job. I have read some reviews where people say that their banter is off and that Cole speaks too much in this book but I wonder if they have read Parker's books recently because it seemed pretty darn close to me. Cole & Hitch's banter kept the story moving, even when it slowed, and their chatter at times made me laugh out loud.The story is pretty straight forward and in retrospect, a very thin story. Overall, it is essentially a point A to point B story with just a few twists. The story with Allie continues as a sort of wrapper around the main story line, a little in the beginning and then again at the end. I really like this sort of thing as it makes the individual book feel more like a long continuing story than a simple one-shot novel.One thing I really like, that seems to annoy others, is the short chapters. Many of the scenes or chapters are just a few pages long. My life is very hectic so being able to read just one more page and wrap up the scene is perfect for me.Overall, if you like westerns, if you like witty banter between what is surely a pair of great friends, you will enjoy this book. The important question of course, how does this compare to Parker's efforts? Not as good as his first two books, but on par with the third and better than the forth. So I would suggest this is a good addition to the series.I will certainly pick up the next book in the series, the just released Bull River.

The Parker family made a great choice when they picked Robert Knott to continue the Cole-Hitch series.It is impossible to tell the difference between Parker and Knott's books. There may be an explanation for the passing of the torch with no drop-off in the product. Actor Ed Harris, who played Virgil Cole, in the movie about the first Cole-Hitch book recommended the book crediting Knott's with a great screenplay for the movie.I agree with Mr. Harris because I thought Parker had written the screenplay for the movie because it was so faithful to the book."Ironhorse" is a book that cannot be put down, I read it in two days, because it keeps the reader totally interested in the book with not lulls or page-fillers. Buying the Kindle version of the book also helps because the reader can continue reading using different computers, a kindle, or a smartphone. Last year, I finally converted from buying physical books (35 years) to purchasing kindle books and will never go back buying the actual book.There is no need to actually buy a Kindle or similar device because free software is available that allows Kindle purchases to be downloaded to a computer/laptop and most smartphones include a Kindle app. I have the software loaded on three computers plus my droid phone.One side-note: I hope Mr. Harris makes another Cole-Hitch movie because the first one was very entertaining.

Seriously, up to this point I have only read Zane Grey westerns, about 40 of them. I hesitated to buy this, although I am a big fan of Spenser and Jesse Stone. But I decided, what the heck, I'll give this western a try, and I am very glad I did. The book mostly takes place on a train, but not entirely. A band of outlaws attempt to rob a train from which Cole and Hitch are riding, along with the Texas governor, his family, and a half million dollars. When the robbery is thwarted, the train breaks apart and the governor's coach is in the back with the Governor and his wife, the money, and what is left of the outlaw gang. Cole and Hitch are in a car that separates later, and the engine travels on with a car that contains the governor's 2 daughters. Long story short, the girls end up being kidnapped for the half million that the gang never found, and Cole and Hitch are asked to deliver the ransom and find the girls. A very good book.